How to get fromBangkok to Koh Tao

What to expect when visiting Koh Tao

Koh Tao is also a popular diving destination in the Gulf of Thailand. Known as one of the cheapest locations in the world to get your PADI license, the island offers beautiful underwater scenery with gorgeous coral gardens and tons of fish.

It may be just 1/10 the size of its neighbour Koh Samui, but that doesn’t mean there is less to see in Koh Tao. Here, you’ll find beautiful bays, beaches and viewpoints — all just a motorbike ride away. And the best part? You can enjoy all these at a more laidback and slow pace.

5 ways to get from Bangkok to Koh Tao

The 5 ways to travel the distance of 415 kilometers (258 miles) from Bangkok to Koh Tao are by: bus (8 hours 45 minutes to 14 hours 30 minutes), minivan (16 hours), train via Chumphon (7 hours 25 minutes to 17 hours), flight (3 hours 15 minutes to 8 hours) and train via Suratthani (11 hours 30 minutes to 20 hours 30 minutes). The journey duration ranges between 3 hours 15 minutes to 20 hours 30 minutes and the quickest way is by flight. The lowest priced tickets start from €22 for the train via Chumphon.

When taking the train from Bangkok to Koh Tao, you can choose to go either via Chumphon or via Surat Thani.

We recommend travelling by train via Chumphon, as this province is nearer to Koh Tao. From there, it takes around 3 hours to reach Koh Tao by ferry.

From your hotel in Bangkok, you will first have to go to Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station, which is the starting point for all trains going to Chumphon.

We recommend that you take a night train that arrives early morning in Chumphon. This way, you can immediately transfer to the only van leaving in the morning, which is at 06:00, and arrive early in Koh Tao.

The train ride to Chumphon Railway Station can take around 5h 40m - 9h 10m, depending on the train you take.

Fares start at €6.10 for a second-class seat. Some trains also offer first and second-class berths that are more expensive, but definitely more comfortable. See our recommended train schedules below.

Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Third Class Seat Fan

Map Amarit

17:30

7h 3m

00:33

19:50

7h

02:50

20:30

7h

03:30

Thai Railway

€6.10

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• 24/7 customer support

€6.10

17:30

7h 3m

00:33

20:30

7h

03:30

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• 24/7 customer support

€7.50

19:50

7h

02:50

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Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Third Class Seat Fan

Chumphon

15:10

7h 7m

22:17

16:10

7h 6m

23:16

17:30

7h 55m

01:25

18:50

7h 28m

02:18

19:50

7h 53m

03:43

20:30

7h 50m

04:20

Thai Railway

€6.40

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• 24/7 customer support

€6.40

15:10

7h 7m

22:17

17:30

7h 55m

01:25

20:30

7h 50m

04:20

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• 24/7 customer support

€7.70

18:50

7h 28m

02:18

19:50

7h 53m

03:43

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• 24/7 customer support

€9.10

16:10

7h 6m

23:16

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Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Third Class Seat Fan

Lang Suan

15:10

8h 19m

23:29

17:30

9h 5m

02:35

19:50

9h 4m

04:54

20:30

9h 9m

05:39

Thai Railway

€6.70

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• 24/7 customer support

€6.70

15:10

8h 19m

23:29

17:30

9h 5m

02:35

20:30

9h 9m

05:39

Check on BookAway

• 24/7 customer support

€8

19:50

9h 4m

04:54

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Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Second Class Seat Fan

Map Amarit

17:30

7h 3m

00:33

19:50

7h

02:50

20:30

7h

03:30

Thai Railway

€9.40

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• 24/7 customer support

€9.40

17:30

7h 3m

00:33

20:30

7h

03:30

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• 24/7 customer support

€10.80

19:50

7h

02:50

Check on BookAway

Outside Chumphon Railway Station, vans are available to take you to the ferry terminal, where you’ll be taking the ferry to Mae Haad Pier in Koh Tao.

Fame Tours & Services and Lomprayah vans are available with fares from €16.

Travel time is around 1h 45m - 8h, including the ferry ride to Koh Tao.

When travelling from Bangkok to Koh Tao, you can also travel via Surat Thani, which is the province next to Chumphon in the south.

Koh Tao is actually a part of Surat Thani, but travelling via this province takes longer and can be more expensive than going via Chumphon.

However, we still wanted to share this option in case the option with the stopover in Chumphon doesn’t fit your itinerary for some reason.

Same as the train via Chumphon, trains to Surat Thani also depart from Krung Thep Aphiwat Station in Bangkok. The journey takes longer, though, around 8h 50m - 12h.

Since the train ride to Surat Thani Railway Station is a bit longer, you can try a sleeper berth with air conditioning for a more comfortable journey.

Ticket prices for second-class sleeper berths start from €7. Below are our recommended train schedules.

Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Third Class Seat Fan

Chaiya

15:10

9h 29m

00:39

17:30

10h 2m

03:32

18:50

9h 34m

04:24

19:50

10h

05:50

20:30

10h 10m

06:40

Thai Railway

€7

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• 24/7 customer support

€7

15:10

9h 29m

00:39

17:30

10h 2m

03:32

20:30

10h 10m

06:40

Check on BookAway

• 24/7 customer support

€8.40

18:50

9h 34m

04:24

19:50

10h

05:50

Check on BookAway

Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Third Class Seat Fan

Surat Thani Train Station

15:10

10h 1m

01:11

16:10

9h 39m

01:49

17:30

10h 36m

04:06

18:50

10h 8m

04:58

19:50

10h 33m

06:23

20:30

10h 46m

07:16

Thai Railway

€7.30

Compare prices

• 24/7 customer support

€7.30

15:10

10h 1m

01:11

17:30

10h 36m

04:06

20:30

10h 46m

07:16

Check on BookAway

• 24/7 customer support

€8.60

18:50

10h 8m

04:58

19:50

10h 33m

06:23

Check on BookAway

• 24/7 customer support

€9.90

16:10

9h 39m

01:49

Check on BookAway

Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Third Class Seat Fan

Ban Song

15:10

10h 53m

02:03

18:50

11h 3m

05:53

19:50

11h 35m

07:25

20:30

11h 51m

08:21

Thai Railway

€7.50

Compare prices

• 24/7 customer support

€7.50

15:10

10h 53m

02:03

20:30

11h 51m

08:21

Check on BookAway

• 24/7 customer support

€8.90

18:50

11h 3m

05:53

19:50

11h 35m

07:25

Check on BookAway

Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station

Second Class Seat Fan

Ban Song

15:10

10h 53m

02:03

18:50

11h 3m

05:53

19:50

11h 35m

07:25

20:30

11h 51m

08:21

Thai Railway

€12.50

Compare prices

• 24/7 customer support

€12.50

15:10

10h 53m

02:03

20:30

11h 51m

08:21

Check on BookAway

• 24/7 customer support

€13.90

18:50

11h 3m

05:53

19:50

11h 35m

07:25

Check on BookAway

From Surat Thani Railway Station, the combined van and ferry ride to Koh Tao takes around 2h 30m - 8h 30m.

Fares for the combined van and ferry ride with Lomprayah start at €23.

If you miss the van departure, you need to figure out your own transportation to Donsak Pier, which is about 79 km away from the train station.

Tapee pier Lomprayah

Speedboat

Mae Haad Koh Tao

12:00

4h

16:00

15:30

2h 30m

18:00

Lomprayah

€31

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• 24/7 customer support

€31

12:00

4h

16:00

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• 24/7 customer support

€32

15:30

2h 30m

18:00

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Booking an overnight bus and connecting ferry to Koh Tao is the easiest way to reach this paradise island from Bangkok. With this option, both the bus and ferry are already organised for you, so you won’t have to book the tickets separately.

The combined bus and ferry option requires two transfers. The first one is by bus or minivan in Chumphon or Hua Hin, while the second transfer is to board the ferry at Chumphon Pier.

Combined tickets start from €32, and the journey can take around 8 hours 45 minutes to 14 hours 30 minutes.

Departure and arrival station

Songserm, Montanatip, and Lomprayah buses all depart from Khao San Road, the famous backpacker street in Bangkok. For Paradive Travel, the meet-up point is at Hua Lamphong Railway Station.

After the transfer in Hua Hin or Chumphon, the bus or minivan will take you to Chumphon Pier. From here, you will take the ferry and arrive at Koh Tao Island.

You can travel to Koh Tao from Bangkok with a combined van and ferry. BookAway lets you book both tickets at once, saving you the trouble of buying them separately.

Fame Tours & Services is operating on this route. See the schedule below.

If you’d rather save time than money when travelling from Bangkok to Koh Tao, your best option is to fly via Koh Samui. With this option, you do not need to spend more than half of your day travelling.

Koh Tao doesn’t have its own airport, so you will have to take a flight from Bangkok to Koh Samui, an island that is another main tourist destination just below Koh Tao.

This option also involves a minivan ride to the pier and a ferry ride to Koh Tao. Even with the transfers, by flight is the fastest option to travel from Bangkok to Koh Tao.

TIP: If you decide to travel by plane, please consider including a carbon compensation fee to reduce your impact on the environment.

There are multiple flights departing from Bangkok to Koh Samui every day. All flights are operated by Bangkok Airways.

For a flight to Koh Samui Airport that takes around 1 hour 5 minutes, ticket prices start from 2,000 THB (€56).

Check the ferry schedules before booking a flight (Step 3). Most ferry companies have the latest departure at 12:30 pm. This means you have to book a morning flight in order to arrive at Koh Tao on the same day.

For more information, you can read how to go from Bangkok to Koh Samui.

Other flight options when travelling from Bangkok to Koh Tao

You also have the option to fly to Chumphon or Surat Thani and take a ferry from there to Koh Tao.

Flying from Bangkok to Chumphon or Surat Thani can save you some money, but it will also take you more time to reach Koh Samui as these ports are further from Koh Tao.

Travelling this journey to Surat Thani by night train can be a great alternative too, but in the end, the bus+ferry might be the easiest option if you want to save money.

Seatran Discovery used to include pick-up from the airport, but the last time we checked (June 2024), they haven’t resumed their operations yet. No other ferry companies include airport pick-up, so you’ll need to travel on your own from the airport to the pier.

The ferries from Koh Samui to Koh Tao depart from Mae Nam Pier and Nathon Pier. SmackOne offers van services to these Zone 2 areas for 250 THB (€6.90). There are van departures every 30 minutes from 07:00 to 21:30.

You can also take a taxi from the airport with rates starting from 400 THB (€11.10).

In Mae Nam and Nathon Pier, high-speed and speed boats to Koh Tao are available. The travel time from Koh Samui to Koh Tao will take just 1.5-2 hours. Fares start from €14.70.